McDonald’s to Bail on 2 Burgers

Fast-food heavyweight McDonald’s is slimming down… their menu. According to a company memo obtained by Crain’s Chicago Business, the Big N’ Tasty will be Dead N’ Gone by September 1.

Introduced in 2001, the Big N’ Tasty burger, topped with lettuce and tomato, was seen as the clown’s direct response to Burger King’s Whopper. But now that Mickey D’s is going full steam ahead with its Angus Third Pounders, the sammie that the company website touts as “The Standard-Bearer of Burgers” has been downgraded to the point of being obsolete.

“They’ve kept the Big N’ Tasty around as a competitor to the Whopper, in case they wanted to launch another burger war and put it on the dollar menu,” according to Richard Adams, a former McDonald’s exec. “Then Burger King has to retaliate with 99-cent Whoppers. I think it’s good that they get rid of the Big N’ Tasty, so they’re not tempted to do that.”

Yeah, Richard… thank God no one will be “tempted” to make their crappy burgers affordable. But the Big N’ Tasty isn’t the only casualty. The Clown & Co. will also drop its Mac Snack Wrap in the coming weeks, due to slow sales.

In its place (but almost certainly at a much higher price point) will be a new Angus Snack Wrap. A Chicago Tribune report indicated that the typical McDonald’s location moves just 10 to 15 Mac Snack Wraps per day. But Angus burgers are selling at roughly 50 per day, so the chain is clearly hoping that its Angus fans will support the bunless version, too.

Personally, I’ll have no problem bidding these burgers bon voyage. The last Mickey D’s burger I had wasn’t terrible… until I put it head-to-head with a cheaper and tastier competitor. And don’t get me started on the sheer catastrophe that is the flagship Big Mac. In fact, McDonald’s isn’t even in my Top 10 when I need a fast-food fix. I thoroughly enjoy an occasional Filet-O-Fish and am happy to stop in during early morning hours for an Egg McMuffin, but when I’ve got a hamburger hankering, I can think of a dozen better roadside options that are just as easy to find.

And what new menu items will the Golden Arches be rolling out? Look for fruit-topped oatmeal, frappes, and smoothies soon. That sound you hear is the Hamburglar spinning in his grave.